Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – Etihad Airways has officially opened its Etihad Eco Residence, Abu Dhabi’s first purpose-built, sustainable Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum rated cabin crew accommodation. The project is the result of a unique partnership between the UAE’s national airline and the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, Masdar.

The complex,
which comprises 500 apartments in 11 buildings at the pioneering Masdar City
development, was recently awarded ‘Sustainable Design of the Year’ at the 2017 Emirates
Green Building Council (EGBC) MENA Green Awards, and ‘Sustainable Construction
Project of the Year’ at the Big Projects Middle East Awards 2017. The residence
offers comfortable, high-specification one and two-bedroom apartments which include
furniture and white goods provided by Etihad Airways.

Mana
Mohamed Saeed Al Mulla, Etihad Aviation Group Chief Group Support Services Officer, said: “The
opening of the landmark Etihad Eco Residence underscores not only the
importance we place on providing superior housing to our valued cabin crew, but
also our responsibility, as part of the greater Abu Dhabi vision, to play a part
in transforming the capital into a global leader in smart urban planning, clean
energy and sustainability.”

The residence reflects Masdar’s commitment to the three pillars of
social, economic and environmental sustainability and is designed to promote
biodiversity while minimising the use of ‘high embodied energy’ materials. The
use of local suppliers has also helped to reduce transport-related carbon
emissions. At least 20 per cent of materials were either sourced or
manufactured within 800 kilometres of the project.

Yousef Baselaib, Executive Director of Sustainable
Real Estate at Masdar, said: “This new development demonstrates how early
project involvement by key stakeholders, including the end-user, developer,
design team and contractor, results in a highly desirable end-product. We hope
Etihad Airways’ cabin crew enjoy the amenities at their new building, as well
as those at Masdar City.”

Etihad Airways employs over 5,800 Abu Dhabi-based
cabin crew. The opening of the Etihad Eco Residence reflects the airline’s crew
accommodation strategy of providing superior, environmentally-friendly homes
with recreational, dining, health and lifestyle facilities, conveniently
located close to the capital’s international airport for ease of transport and
operational efficiency.

Mark Scoble, Etihad Airways Head of In-flight
Performance and Operations, added: “Our brief to the architects and designers
of the Etihad Eco Residence was to create a development that is in line with
Etihad’s environmental principles as well as a safe, secure and commercially
viable residential precinct that embraces our acclaimed cabin crew community, who
hail from over 120 countries around the world.

“This
new residence offers high quality homes and a desirable cosmopolitan lifestyle
in a sustainable urban environment. We are proud that this has now been made a
reality for our flying family here in Abu Dhabi.”

An enhanced
microclimate has been created around each of the buildings using sustainable
landscaping methods and massing the shape
and size of the buildings, which captures the breeze for natural ventilation
while offering protection from wind and dust. These features complement the
urban environment and contribute to overall energy saving.

Each of the Etihad Eco Residence’s buildings has been
designed using low environmental impact construction materials, which aid the reduction
of strong sunlight yet maximise available natural daylight.

Solar hot water systems provide 76 per cent of the
community’s water demand and the buildings’ design encourages greater water
efficiency and the reduction of potable water usage, as well as smart waste
management.

Masdar is collaborating with
local stakeholders to pioneer a ‘greenprint’ for sustainable urban development
at Masdar City using a holistic approach focused on integrating sustainable
transportation initiatives, optimising waste management, reducing energy use,
water consumption and carbon emissions, and accommodating rapid urbanisation.

In January 2018, autonomous
vehicle producer NAVYA was awarded the contract to develop phase two of Masdar
City’s personal rapid transit (PRT) system, which will be expanded along a new
one-kilometre route linking Masdar Institute with the headquarters of the
International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Majid Al Futtaim’s My City
Centre Mall.